


Fragments

by DoctorpooandtheTURDIS



Series: The New Adventures of Doctor Who [3]
Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who & Related Fandoms, Doctor Who (1963), Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: A Serious Deconstruction of "Aliens Made them do it", Experimentation, F/M, Incest, Memory Loss, No Smut, Not Genetic But That Doesn't Make It Okay, Warning though because this gets DARK, What's Happening Isn't Willing for Either of them, nothing too graphic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-19
Updated: 2020-07-21
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:54:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 9
Words: 7,102
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25371211
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DoctorpooandtheTURDIS/pseuds/DoctorpooandtheTURDIS
Summary: Something horrible has happened to the Doctor and Susan. The problem? Neither of them can remember what it is.That is, the problem is, they're starting to remember.
Relationships: Eleventh Doctor & Susan Foreman
Series: The New Adventures of Doctor Who [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1840504
Kudos: 5





	1. Chapter 1

_So, for those of who are squeamish at the subject matter of non-consensual sex, non-genetic incest, and pregnancy, you probably shouldn’t read this. Cause it gets DARK._

The floor beneath the Doctor vibrated and hummed as the Time Rotor fell up and down. The Doctor opened his eyes and looked around in confusion.

Why was he lying down on the console room floor?

The Doctor grasped onto the console, and pulled himself up, struggling a moment to balance.

He looked around the console room in confusion. Everything was in its proper place, roundels on the wall glowing white, the time rotor itself glowing orange.

Why were the engines going? He, Susan, and River were supposed to be laying low in Coal Hill. Speaking of…

Where were they?

The Doctor’s stomach rumbled. But first, breakfast.

**_ **DW** _ **

Susan groaned, forcing her eyes open.

Staring up at the ceiling, Susan recognized herself to be in her room on the TARDIS. She looked to her right, towards her bedside table.

The clock flashed 7:00.

What was she doing? She didn’t remember going to sleep. In fact, the last thing she remembered was...

Susan furrowed her eyebrows. She couldn’t remember.

Just what had they gotten up to last night?

Susan pushed herself out of bed and stood up.

As Susan began to move, her stomach began to ache, like she’d tripped and fallen onto it. Oh, well, it was probably nothing.

Susan began to sniff, as she smelled something coming from outside.

**_ **DW** _ **

The Doctor stood over the stove in the kitchen, frying an egg in a skilled.

The door slid open, and Susan came walking in.

“Good morning.” The Doctor turned to her with a smile.

“Good morning, Grandfather.” Susan returned with a smile of her own as she sat down at the table. She began to yawn, the yawn itself lasting for a few seconds.

“Long night?” The Doctor asked, preparing a plate for her first.

“Yeah… I think.” Susan nodded. “How late did we state up last night?”

The Doctor frowned. “You don’t remember?”

“No.” Susan admitted. “What happened?”

“I, uh…” The Doctor sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck. “I don’t quite remember either.”

Susan frowned. “You have the best memory out of all of us. Why not?”

“I don’t know. It’s probably nothing,” The Doctor huffed. “But maybe River-“

_“Come on.” The Doctor pulled Susan into the TARDIS._

_“Where are we going?” Susan asked, as the Doctor pulled her away from Coal Hill School quickly._

_“Back to the TARDIS.” The older Time Lord answered. “Retirement’s great and all, but I’m just. So. BORED!”_

_“Okay, but why don’t we wait for River?” Susan asked._

_“I_ can’t _wait!” The Doctor impatiently replied, as they marched up to I.M Foreman’s scrapyard. “I’m going mad! Do you know how tedious it is to tech physics to human teenagers! It’s torture!”_

_Susan softly chuckled, shaking her head._

_“River’s going to be hurt we didn’t wait for her.” Susan pointed out._

_“Maybe…” The Doctor turned to Susan with a grin. “But she doesn’t have to know.” He winked, as they both walked up to the TARDIS._

“Grandfather!” Susan called, shaking the Doctor by his shoulders.

“Wh-what?” The Doctor looked around the kitchen confusedly.

“Are you okay?” Susan worriedly asked, looking into his eyes. “You spaced out there for a second.”

“Y-yeah.” The Doctor insisted, looking back at her. “I’m fine. So!” He suddenly smiled. “Eat up. You have school.”

Susan groaned. “Grandfather, why do I have to go to that school? I’ve already finished all my studies, and even if I hadn’t, no human school could come close.”

“Maybe.” The Doctor granted. “But you still look like a human teenager. A lone teenage girl wandering around the streets during the school year in the sixties arouses suspicion. Besides, I think it’s a good opportunity for you to make friends.”

“I have you.”

“Well.” The Doctor straightened his bow tie. “I am pretty cool.”

“No, you don’t get it. If I hang around you, the other girls in school try to get friendly with me to get to you.” Susan grinned.

The Doctor snorted and crossed his arms. “Oh, so I’m only mostly useless then?”

“You said it.” Susan laughed. “Not me.”

**_ **DW** _ **

Susan walked into her bedroom, picking out her outfit for the day from her wardrobe. A simple striped shirt and jeans, nothing too extravagant.

She walked into the bathroom attached to her room, and a towel materialized on the rack, as Susan began to shrug off her night clothing.

Susan looked at her bare form in the mirror and recoiled in confusion.

A long scar, almost perfectly straight, ran horizontally over her abdomen. Susan’s eyebrows stitched together in confusion, as she poked it experimentally.

“Ah!” She grunted, as pain shot throughout her nerves.

_“No!” Susan kicked, as she was dragged through metallic alien corridors. “Let me go! Let me go!”_

_“I’m sorry, Susan.” The Doctor replied. “But this has to be done.”_

_“No, no!” Susan cried. “Grandfather, please, no!”_

_The Doctor pulled Susan into a room and forced her down onto an operating table. Blue glowing energy clasps secured around her wrists and ankles, immobilizing her._

_The Doctor turned to his right, where a tall, insectoid alien stood._

_“She’s ready.” The Doctor told the alien._

_The alien clicked and turned to look down at Susan. Down from the ceiling descended an arrangement of mechanical arms. One, with a syringe, stuck Susan in the arm. Another, a scalpel, began to cut into her lower abdomen._

_And Susan screamed._

Susan gasped and recoiled back from the mirror, staring at the scar in horror and revulsion.

“Susan?” The Doctor called out from the corridor. “I heard you drop something! Are you okay?”

“Y-yes, grandfather, I’m fine!” Susan replied, eyes still affixed to the scar.

Something horrible had happened.

But what?


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As the Doctor begins his physics class, he gets another flash of memories.
> 
> And right now, the thing Susan is terrified the most of is her own grandfather.

“Susan,” The Doctor glanced over to her as she came out into the console room, “Took you longer than usual.” He noted.

 _‘Don’t let him know something’s wrong.’_ Susan thought to herself.

“Oh, I just…” She searched. “Looking for my assignments.”

The Doctor frowned. “You usually do it in the library.”

“Well, you know how busy things get…” Susan trailed off.

The Doctor narrowed his eyes slightly. He suddenly relaxed. “Welp, no use standing around yapping about it now. Come on, let’s get going.”

**_ **DW** _ **

“Forces!” The Doctor began energetically, turning away from the board to his students. “The universe is filled with ‘em! Light, dark, attraction, repulsion… Good, and evil.”

Physics was one of the Doctor’s favorite subjects, only marginally beaten out by history. Then again, he’d tried to do history once, and had to get moved to a different subject matter once he’d started making references to things that happened long after nineteen-sixty-three, and historical details that weren’t accepted as fact during this time.

Still, he got to do the big sweeping speeches. He liked the big sweeping speeches.

“Um… Isn’t this supposed to be physics? Not philosophy?” One of the teenagers confusedly murmured.

“Well…” The Doctor shifted awkwardly for a moment. “Shut up, I’m getting there.” He shot, no actual venom behind it. “My point is, the universe is filled with these forces all around us. Jump up, gravity pulls you back down. Try to push something heavy, it gives you resistance. Roll a ball down a street, friction makes it slow down. Our universe is one massive, living, breathing machine, constantly running, constantly moving, like an engine.”

“But engines can’t run forever.” A redhead girl near the back piped up.

“Oh, good catch.” The Doctor complimented. “Mary’s right, like an engine in say, a car or, a boat or-“

_The TARDIS sparked and spluttered, throwing the Doctor and Susan around the console room._

_“What’s happening!?” Susan shouted, over the roar of the malfunctioning engines._

_“I don’t know!” The Doctor replied. He ran to the other side of the console, using the console itself to keep upright, as he peered into the fault locator. “Oh, of course!” He groaned, looking into the tiny screen that flashed a series of letters and numbers back at him. “The navcomputer just burned out, the TARDIS is having trouble figuring out where she is! Teach me to keep using the same part for half a millennium…”_

_“Can we fix it!?” Susan asked. “I don’t particularly wish to end up splattered against the wall!”_

_“Well, you’re a laugh, aren’t you?” The Doctor sarcastically shot back in response. He nervously brushed back his hair, as he tried to get the TARDIS back under control. “It’s an easy fix, yes, but we don’t have the parts on board, and I’m not sure we can make it back to Gallifrey with her in this state! We could fall out of the Vortex into the Void, or worse!”_

_“Okay, let’s not do that then!” Susan instructed. “Where are we going?”_

_“Excroth.” The Doctor quickly replied, slightly short of breath as he had to keep the TARDIS going manually. “Home to one of the most scientifically enlightened species in the universe. If anyone’s able to make a replacement part for the TARDIS, it’s them.”_

_“Right, I’ll just be over here… trying not to vomit!”_

“Doctor Foreman?”

“Hm?” The Doctor suddenly snapped out of it, looking around.

“Are you okay?” One of the students inquired.

“Oh, quite alright thank you.” The Doctor straightened his bow tie. “Now, where was I…? Oh, that’s right, engines! See, engines can’t run forever, over time, they start to wear down, get old, which brings us to entropy…”


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Susan decides to begin a search of her own, and realizes something horrible.
> 
> River is missing.

Susan sat at her desk in Miss Wright’s class, absently looking on, but holding making no actual effort to concentrate on the woman herself.

Ever since the ‘Flashback’ (she wasn’t sure if it was something that had actually happened, or some sort of trick), Susan had difficulty focusing on anything else, despite her best efforts. She could just ask her Grandfather what had happened, but if he really was the responsible party, for whatever reason-

“Susan, are you paying attention?” Miss Wright called her out in front of everybody else.

“Oh,” She shrunk down in her seat slightly. “Sorry. I’ll pay closer attention. I promise.” She hated this human school; it made her feel like she was back at the Academy. But the Doctor thought it was a good way for her to build up a social circle beyond him and River, so there she was, stuck slogging through some of the most backwards excuses for education she’d ever experienced.

“Thank you,” Wright somewhat sarcastically replied, as she went back to the subject at hand.

Susan began to absent-mindedly drum her fingers against her thigh, as she got lost in thought.

What _was_ that flashback about? Even if it was a memory, why would her own grandfather drag her against her will to an operating table?

And as much as she wanted to push it out of her mind, the events kept replaying in her mind. And, at least some parts of it had actually happened, if the scar across her belly was any indication.

She needed to figure it out.

And she couldn’t do it, at least, not while the Doctor was around.

And so, she waited until the end of the period. It was only approaching lunch and skipping the rest of the day would give Susan ample time to do what she needed to do.

**_ **DW** _ **

The doors to the TARDIS creaked closed very quietly, Susan taking care not to be loud just in case the Doctor had come back to the ship as well.

A warm gust of air brushed her gently, and Susan smiled up at the ceiling. “Hey, old girl… I’m looking for something.”

A gust of lukewarm air probed slightly inquisitively, like a wary animal. Susan, to her credit, picked up on the meaning.

“No, I don’t know what I’m looking for.” Susan sighed. “That’s the problem.”

A slight tickle of warm air hit her again.

“Don’t laugh!” Susan embarrassedly replied. “It feels like I’m going insane over here!”

Another breeze hit her, slightly ashamed if how slow it was moving was any indication.

Susan sighed again. “I’m sorry… I’m just… on edge. I saw… I don’t know what I saw. I was being dragged by grandfather, and… it all ends there.”

A gust of cooler air hit her.

“No, I didn’t imagine it!” Susan vehemently denied. “I have the scar to prove it!” She lifted her shirt ever so slightly, knowing that the TARDIS could see.

The TARDIS replied with a gust of warmer air that tried to be comforting, but at the same time somehow held notes of revulsion.

“Precisely.” Susan pulled the hem of her shirt back down. “So, then should we get to it?”

Instantly, Susan was hit with a blast of frigid air, like opening a door to the outside in winter.

“No!?” Susan incredulously repeated. “What do you mean ‘no!?’”

The same cold air hit her again, as the radio on the console switched on.

_“I’m sorry, Dave, I’m afraid I can’t let you do that.”_

“Oh, so now you’re taking the time to make the effort to properly communicate?” Susan questioned with her hands on her hips, looking at the time rotor with narrowed eyes. “Why won’t you help me?”

_“Danger, Will Robinson!”_

“I’m used to danger. It’s par for the course, traveling with grandfather.”

_“Oh, I got that. Stop. Give it up.”_

Susan huffed. “Well then, if it’s so dangerous, why don’t you tell me why I shouldn’t go ahead with this, and maybe I’ll consider it?”

The TARDIS fell silent for a few moments. _“Hey, where’s-“_ The radio abruptly switched to another clip, _“River?”_

“River?” Susan repeated. Her eyes widened in fear as she realized something. “She’s not on board… She wasn’t on board this morning, either… Where is she?” Susan questioned, receiving no response. “Hey, if River’s missing, you need to help me! She could be in danger!”

The TARDIS let out a gust of air that could be construed as a sigh, and one of the doors on the upper level slid open.

Susan beamed widely. “Thanks!” She offered, running up the stairs to the door in question.

_“…I hate all of you.”_


	4. Chapter 4

Susan didn’t know how long she’d been wandering the corridors for. It could’ve been hours, or minutes, time itself lost all meaning while inside the TARDIS.

A red light flashed over one branch of the intersection, and Susan followed.

It seemed the TARDIS was leading her somewhere, but to what?

In time, Susan found the answer.

She came to a door, with a green crescent moon stamped on the smooth metal. The door slid open, and Susan found herself standing in the sickbay. She stepped inside slowly, drinking in her surroundings. She’d never been in this part of the TARDIS, there was no reason to.

So, why did the TARDIS lead her there?

Something collided against the back of Susan’s head, and she whipped around, looking down. A tiny plastic bottle rolled on the floor, and she bent down to pick it up.

Susan frowned as she ran the bottle around in her hands, looking at the label. Her eyes widened ever so slightly, as she read the contents.

_“Retcon?” Susan inquired quietly; her legs pulled to her chest. She was sat down on an unfamiliar bed, the Doctor sitting next to her._

_“It’s the only way.” The Doctor told her. “For us to be able to… do what they want us to do, while keeping our relationships intact.” He struggled, like the evasive wording itself was a war to say._

_“I’m not doing it.” Susan resolved. “They can Retcon us all they like. I am not doing… THAT with you, even if I forget after the fact!”_

_“I know.” The Doctor nodded empathetically. “But if we don’t… It’s River’s life.”_

_Susan remained quiet for a moment. “Why’d you have to bring her into this? When we left, you said she didn’t have to know.”_

_“That was before we found ourselves in over our heads.” The Doctor sighed. “I thought- …I_ hoped _she could help us. Instead, all I did was get her tangled up in this mess.”_

_Susan looked down. “…Why does it have to be me? Why not her?”_

_“We’re the ones who need the part, not her.” The Doctor solemnly explained. “We’re the customers, it’s our money that we have to pay with. And River may not have been with us during the purchase, but they caught her trying to bust us out, she’s an accomplice now.”_

_“’Money’ in this case being…” Susan sighed. “Why won’t they just let us go?”_

_“They’ve already installed the part.” The Doctor rubbed his forehead. “It’s already integrated into the TARDIS’s systems, it can’t go back to them. We_ have _to pay now. If we don’t… the punishment for thieves is death.”_

_“I thought you said this was one of the most scientifically enlightened societies in the universe.”_

_“It is.” The Doctor answered. “But scientific enlightenment and social enlightenment aren’t always intertwined.” The Doctor sighed. “If we get this done and over with, it’s quick, the Excarons get their data, we’ll forget afterwards, and the three of us can go on our merry way. If we don’t, we die.” He looked away in shame. “I’m sorry, Susan. I didn’t think this would happen… They’ve been nothing but courteous to me the entire time I’ve known them.”_

_“But the chance to learn about the reproductive habits of an alien race are too good to let courtesy stand in the way?” She furiously questioned._

_“Not the wording I would use, but…” He shrugged uncertainly. “Those are our choices.”_

_Susan scowled. “Give me that.” She snatched one of the Retcon pills out of the Doctor’s hand. “For the record, I’m doing this for River. Not for you.”_

_“Then on that, we’re in agreement.” The Doctor replied, holding his pill up. “Ready?”_

_“No.” Susan shot back. “I don’t think anyone could be prepared for this sort of thing.”_

_“Just… pretend it’s someone else.” The Doctor advised, throwing back his own pill._

_Susan followed._

Susan dropped the bottle like it was searing hot and recoiled away.

Her face began to turn green, and she sprinted towards the nearest bin she could find.

As she wretched, only one thought went through her mind.

_‘I should’ve listened to the damn TARDIS.’_


	5. Chapter 5

It was a good thirty minutes before Susan stopped vomiting. Because as if the mere idea of her and the Doctor doing… _that_ wasn’t bad enough, she actually had to deal with the memory of the event fading back into her mind.

But eventually, she pulled herself together. She had to. If not for herself, then for River. Speaking of whom…

Susan marched back to her room, and opened a page in one of her notebooks.

_‘So, this is what I know so far:_

_A part in the TARDIS broke down, so we went to Excroth to replace it._

_The Excarons wished for payment in scientific data, but we had no control over what data they wanted._

_Retcon was administered to keep the... process moving without us having to worry about the repercussions._

_River was captured. Presumably, she’s still there, if her absence now is any indication._

_But that doesn’t explain what the first flash of memory was, why I was being operated on…’_

Susan furrowed her eyebrows as she tried to remember. Distantly, she thought she could hear screaming, but whether it was hers or something else’s was anyone’s guess.

_‘I suppose it doesn’t really matter now. I have to find River. If she didn’t take part in it, she might be able to tell me what happened. But I need to be careful, if grandfather is-‘_

“Susan?” The Doctor called from behind, causing Susan to jump and whip around.

“Ah!” She clutched her chest. “Don’t frighten me like that!”

“Frighten _you_?” The Doctor repeated. “You vanished in the middle of the day, I was running all about the place trying to find you.”

“I… wasn’t feeling good.”

The Doctor started getting more worried, if that were possible. “What’s wrong?” He asked, trying to step forward.

“Don’t-“ Susan stepped back. “Touch me.”

“Susan?” The Doctor asked meekly, looking hurt. “What’s the matter?”

“I don’t…” She spluttered, beginning to sniffle. “I don’t know what’s happening. I feel like I’m losing my mind, I’m having flashbacks, and I can’t-“ She broke down.

“Oh, Susan…” The Doctor whispered, pulling her into a hug, as she began to cry. “I’m here… I’m here…”

“That’s the problem.” Susan replied, yet still clutching onto him. “I think… I think something horrible’s happened… to both of us.”

“Hey, hey…” He rubbed her back comfortingly. “You know what would help?”

“Please don’t ask me to talk about it.”

“Why would we be talking? We’ll be too busy eating Fish Custard.” The Doctor grinned.

**_ **DW** _ **

The Doctor frowned. “I remember us having to land on Excroth.” He told Susan, as she looked down at her untouched plate. “The navcomputer burnt out, so we had to find a replacement, but… I don’t remember anything after that. And I called River for help?”

Susan nodded slowly and silently, still looking at her food.

“But there’s something you’re not telling me.” He guessed. “It wouldn’t put you in this big of a bind if it was nothing.”

“I… can’t say.” She swallowed.

The Doctor’s eyes narrowed. “Are you being forced to keep quiet?” His face twisted in anger. “When I find out who-“

“No, no.” Susan shut him down quickly. “It’s just… I don’t want to talk about it. It’s too… uncomfortable.”

“Then how about this…?” The Doctor reached out a hand to her temple. “Want to let me in?”

Susan thought about it, and closed her eyes, bringing her fragmented memories to the fore.

As they played out, Susan could feel the Doctor’s confusion, fear, horror, and disgust like they were her own, and the connection broke as the other Time Lord recoiled.

“My… _God_!” The Doctor dry heaved. “Ew! Ew ew ew ew! I mean … Hell no! Help… hyperventilating…”

Susan reached inter her pocket and produced a paper bag. The Doctor practically snatched it away from her and began breathing in and out of it. Slowly, the Doctor’s breaths began to settle.

“Right, well…” He swallowed. “So, that’s what happened… But I _am_ concerned about the scar on your stomach…”

“I have no clue what it’s about.” Susan told him.

“…I have some very nasty suspicions.” The Doctor replied. “Let’s head back to the sickbay, run some scans.”


	6. Chapter 6

The Doctor frowned as the medical scanner ran over Susan’s body. “That’s odd…”

Susan’s head shot over to him in worry. “What is it?” She questioned, somewhat dreading the answer.

“That scar on your stomach is fresh,” The Doctor explained, “Judging by how much it’s healed, it’s no older than a few days, a week at most.”

“So?” Susan asked. She figured that much was obvious, given how much it hurt when she poked it.

“So, according to this, that area of your body is one year older than the rest of you.”

Susan froze. “What?”

“Look at the telomeres.” The Doctor pointed. “Over time, they shorten, which contributes to the aging process. Ours shorten at a much, much slower rate than humans’ do, but look. This one-“ He pointed to the one on the left. “Was taken from your arm. This one,” He pointed to the one on the right, “Was taken from the area surrounding your stomach. It’s shorter, at a length consistent with about a year’s decay.”

“So, you’re saying that something’s caused that part of my body to age faster?” Susan questioned.

The Doctor nodded.

“But, why?” Susan confusedly questioned. “It’s not like they’d have any use for my stomach, or my kidneys, or-“

The Doctor sharply inhaled.

_“This is what we wish in exchange.” The drone clicked. It was a horrible, repulsive thing to look at. An artificially engineered servant sent because the Excrons didn’t have the decency to meet Susan and the Doctor in person. “A life for a life.”_

_“Out of the question!” The Doctor roared. “You take me and my granddaughter hostage, force us to act like your playthings under the threat of death, and now you want a sacrifice!?”_

_“No…” The insectoid worm-creature shook its head. “We want the embryo.”_

_“Embryo!?” The Doctor repeated, in a tone of righteous fury that’d make his sixth face pause and take a step back. “I am not kidnapping a child for your experiments!”_

_“It is not kidnapping,” The drone slithered around the Doctor, “If it is your own child.”_

_The Doctor’s jaw tightened, and his demeanor became threatening as he turned to the drone. “What?” He demanded; voice low._

_“Your… female.” The drone gutturally began. “She is with child.”_

_The Doctor clenched his fists. “Time Lords are sterile in their first incarnations. Don’t you dare insult my intelligence like that.”_

_“The amnesiac we administered contained a supplement designed to overcome this… defect.”_

_The Doctor recoiled in horror. “What… what is WRONG with you!?” The Doctor thundered. “This has gone far past scientific curiosity, and into the realm of the grotesque! Is this how you get your kicks!? Playing out some sort of… romance novel fantasy with two unwilling participants, who are family no less, all under the excuse of science!? Answer me!”_

_“We intended no emotional distress…” The drone’s many legs running down the sides of its body curled as its face met the Doctor’s. “We thought it would be constructed as a pleasant outcome. The mammalian instinct to reproduce is notoriously strong.”_

_“Yes, it is.” The Doctor granted, scowling. “But not between those of similar blood!”_

_“You do not share genetic similarities.”_

_The Doctor sighed in frustration, throwing up his hands. “Look, it doesn’t matter if we’re related or not. The point is, you took two people, two unwilling people, and forced them to do something neither of them wished to do. And now, you want to take a child!?”_

_“Perhaps, you should look at is as such; you do not want a reminder of this ordeal in your constant presence, yes? By giving the child to us, you can put this series of events behind you, forever.”_

_“Why do you even want that child? Hmm?”_

_“It is… none of your concern. But rest assured, it shall be cared for and treated with kindness.”_

_“And how can I be sure of that?”_

_“You know our kind, Doctor. You know we are incapable of deceit.”_

_“Lying, no, you’re not capable of that, but withholding the truth? Absolutely capable. I’ll ask you again, what do you want with the child?”_

_“For it to become nothing more than a productive, capable member of society, like any other child.” The drone replied._

_“I’ll… need time. To mull it over.”_

The Doctor dropped the scanner in shock, as he staggered back from Susan.

“Doctor?” She pushed herself up. “What’s wrong.”

“Excroth…” The Doctor replied, stepping away from her. “We need to get back to Excroth, now!”


	7. Chapter 7

“I told you bugs,” River shouted, pulling on the bars of her cell, “It wasn’t my fault your Botanical Garden was destroyed, now let me out, it’s starting to stink in here!”

“Well, thank you…” An older Excron, who looked and sounded a bit too much like Sam Elliott, replied slowly and sarcastically as he lay on the bench.

“Oh, shut up, Scruffy.” She mumbled, before she began to bang on the bars again. “Let me out, let me out!”

Scruffy harrumphed. “Thought River Song was supposed to be the best escape artist in the galaxy.”

“No.” She scowled. “I’m the best escape artist in the universe. But this is too primitive, I can’t take it!”

“That’s the problem with you kids.” Scruffy slowly shook his head. “Back in my day, when we busted out of prison, we did it the old-fashioned way. With sticks. Two sticks. And a rock.”

River huffed. “Sounds like your day sucked. No hallucinogenic lipstick, no vortex manipulator… I’m in a real pickle here, aren’t I?”

“You could just serve your time.” Scruffy recommended. “It’s only eight hours. Go to sleep, time you wake up, it’ll be over with.”

“Sleep for eight hours!?” River incredulously repeated. “What kind of person do you think I am!?”

“A psychopath.”

“…Got me there.”

The room fell into an awkward silence, and River began contemplating regenerating herself then and there just to spice things up, when the outer wall behind them suddenly exploded, throwing River to the ground.

The smoke began clearing, as River coughed.

“What are you laying on the ground for!?” The Doctor, standing on the other side of the busted wall, questioned. “Do you not recognize a jailbreak when you see one!?”

“Oh, I am going to beat the-“ River growled as she stood up.

“Later.” He cut her off, pressing a finger to her lips. “We’ve got a baby to rescue!” He replied, grasping her hand, pulling her along for the ride.

Scruffy, who lay there looking completely unscathed, shook his head. “God damn Time Lords.”

**_ **DW** _ **

“So hold on.” River held out her hand to get the story straight. “They forced you and Susan to mate, accelerated the resultant pregnancy, and kidnapped the child?”

“Yes.” He tersely replied, as they turned a corridor into one of the labs.

“Well…” She chuckled. “Your life certainly doesn’t lack for excitement.”

“It’s not funny.” He growled. “Susan’s going to bear the scars from this for the rest of her life, and this whole ordeal only gives me yet another reason to hate myself.”

“…I’m sorry, it wasn’t funny.”

The Doctor sighed. “We can talk about it later, for now, let’s focus on the task at hand.”

River frowned. “Where is Susan? I haven’t seen her since you broke me out of the prison.”

“She stayed at the TARDIS, trying to figure out where the baby was sent.” The Doctor glanced at River, looking her up and down. “I thought the condition of giving them the baby was you would be set free. How come you’re still here?”

River scowled. “They let me out of that first prison, sure, but I had to stay on the planet. I _thought_ you had a plan to get me out of it, but you up and left.”

“I did have a plan… I think.” The Doctor realized, eyebrows stitching together in thought. “At the time, there were way too many things that could go wrong if I tried to fight them all then and there, but maybe… there were just enough things out of place afterwards to jog our memory.”

River looked on in shock. “They Retconned you?”

“They did.” The Doctor scowled. “And trust me they are going to pay for it.”


	8. Chapter 8

“A Time Lord child…” The Excron Drone looked down on the sleeping baby with a greedy expression. “To have the threads of time itself at our grasp…”

“Indeed, perhaps our time travel experiments can finally get off the ground.” The chief scientist, an older, pudgy man agreed. “And this… Doctor? He could not be persuaded to assist us?”

The massive insectoid shook its head. “Alas, no. He and the younger female were too… set in their ways.”

“I have to say, it all makes me fairly squeamish.” The scientist admitted, “The mere idea of forcing two people to reproduce violates every law of ethics we have set in place for ourselves. And accelerating the pregnancy in such a manner…”

“It was a regrettable course of action, yes…” The drone coiled around the scientist. “But as your humble servant, I only want what is best for this world. Scientific progress waits for no being… You either accept it or get left behind.”

“Yes… quite right.” The scientist agreed. “Now, perhaps we should begin with-“

The entire facility shook like they were at the very epicenter of a great earthquake, as the baby began to cry. 

The scientist looked up in fear, as the lights in the ceiling shut off, switching to red emergency lighting.

_“Warning, intruders in sectors 1, 2, and 3! Seal sectors 4, 5, and 6!”_

The Drone snarled. “They have returned. “

_“Warning, intruders in sectors, 7, 8, and 9! Seal sectors 10, 11, and 12!”_

“They…” The scientist swallowed in fear. “They can’t get here, can they?”

_“Warning, intruders in sectors 13, 14, and 15! Seal sectors 16, 17, and 18!”_

The Drone growled. “I will not allow it.”

**_ **DW** _ **

The Doctor, Susan, and River ran side-by-side through the corridors of the central government lab. River, glancing down the corridor to the right, fired off a shot into one of the sprinklers overhead, tripping the whole system, and throwing off their pursuers for a moment while the Doctor sealed the door behind them.

“Come on!” The Doctor ushered. “Keep moving, keep moving!”

“How much farther?” Susan questioned, huffing and puffing.

“Shouldn’t be too much farther.” The Doctor replied. “Just around this corn-oh.”

The Drone stood there, crouched low to the ground like a tiger ready to pounce.

“Doctor…” The Drone spat. “You could not leave yourself in defeat.”

“Yeah, that’s the thing about me, I’m a bit of a sore loser.” The Time Lord shrugged.

“We had an agreement.” It snarled. “The child for the woman’s release.”

“Well,” He straightened his bow tie, “I never said I wouldn’t come back for it.”

“But you agreed with me!” It replied, almost in surprise. “That the child would be too painful a reminder.”

“Yes…” The Doctor agreed.

“But if you think, for one _second_ we’re going to leave a helpless child in the care of amoral scientists...” Susan stepped forward, brimming with fury. “You’ve got another thing coming.”

“This is your one chance.” The Doctor leveled. “Give us the baby, right now, and we’ll leave.”

“And should I refuse?”

The Doctor stared, outwardly showing nothing, with a thin aura of rage projecting outward. “Then I _will_ stop you.”

The Drone growled. “I should like to see you try.” It charged forward, scuttling across the ground like a snake with legs.

In response, the Doctor jumped into the air as high as she could, grabbing onto one of the crossbeams running across the ceiling.

“Susan!” The Doctor shouted as the Drone snapped at his feet. The Doctor pulled them up, yelping. “Go for the baby, River and I will take care of it!”

Susan began to run, and in response, the Drone curled down to turn in her direction. The Doctor immediately let go, landing on top of the Drone, keeping it from moving as Susan dashed down the corridor.

**_ **DW** _ **

“Um…” The scientist looked into the white plasteel cot, at the wailing child before him awkwardly. “There, tiny Time Lord… don’t cry. It’s just lights… and sirens…”

The door to the room slid open, but the scientist kept his back turned to it.

“Oh, good, you’re back.” The scientist said, thinking he was taking to the Drone. “Those Time Lords didn’t give you too much-“ He turned around finally, and froze.

Susan was stood there, a sonic screwdriver pointed threateningly at his head.

“Give me that baby.” She growled.

“Oh… baby? What baby?”

It was at that moment the child let out another wail.

Susan began to step forward threateningly.

“Y-you don’t understand!” The scientist began to stutter. “We need this child, it’s of vital importance! I’m sorry you and your friend were subjected to that, but it was for the best, really! We-we can compensate you, I swear!”

Susan balled her fist and lunged.

**_ **DW** _ **

“Yeeeeeehaw!” The Doctor yelled, as the Drone tried to buck him off. “Hey, River, you should try this! It’s just like a mechanical bull!”

“I’d rather not, thank you!” River replied, firing a shot at one of the Drone’s legs.

“Enough!” The Drone roared. “I will not have my dignity insulted in such a manner!”

“Why not!?” The Doctor replied, all humor in his voice instantly gone. “You robbed my granddaughter of hers, this is only fair, don’t you think!?”

“Dignity matters not when progress is on the line!” The Drone shot back, as it slammed itself into one of the walls, throwing the Doctor off. “Now…” It looked down at him menacingly, as its mandibles unfurled. It shot forward, like a snake striking…

And its head exploded.

The body toppled over, and River lowered the smoking gun, going to help the Doctor up.

“Ow…” The Doctor groaned as River pulled him up. “You waited until just now to do that?”

River scowled. “I’m sorry, I couldn’t get a shot in without you riding it like a cowboy!”

The Doctor flinched. “Sorry… thanks.”

“Don’t mention it.” River replied. “Seriously, don’t, I don’t want to remember an hour of this by the time it’s over with.”

“Same here.” The Doctor agreed. “Come on, let’s find Susan and get out of here.”

**_ **DW** _ **

“Ow…” Susan shook her hand, trying to get the residual pain of her fist connecting against the scientist’s jaw to go away. “Now I know why grandfather doesn’t like to solve problems with violence… it really hurts.”

Another wail came over from the table where the cot sat.

Susan turned to it slowly, took a deep breath, and began to approach.

“Hello…” She quietly spoke, looking over the cot as the child continued to scream. “Shh… shh… It’s okay… I’m here.” Susan swallowed, reaching out a hand to brush against the child’s forehead. “Hello, little one.”

The child’s wails quieted, as Susan reached in to pluck the baby out of the cot.

“There, there…”

The doors slid open, and the Doctor and River came running in.

“Oh,” The Doctor glanced to the baby, “You already found it.”

“Her,” Susan corrected, gently bobbing her up and down.

“Oh, Susan…” River smiled, approaching the baby. “She’s so cute… Hey there, I’m your aunt River.”

“We’re not keeping the baby.” The Doctor resolved.

“Come on, how could you say no to this itty-bitty face?” River replied, shaking the little girl’s tiny hand.

“Well…” The Doctor coughed, looking over the child as well. “I suppose, she is, kind of cute… for an affront to nature.”

“Come on.” Susan smiled to no one in particular. “Let’s go back home.”


	9. Chapter 9

“…This,” The Doctor handed Susan a vial of a blue, lotion-like substance, “Will heal up that scar nice and neat, like it was never even there.”

“What about everything else?” Susan questioned. “I wrote down what I pieced together in one of my notebooks, and when we wake up, we’ll know we’re missing time.”

“The TARDIS can help sort that out.” The Doctor looked up. “Won’t you, dear?”

The lights overhead glowed brightly, as the time rotor rose and fell.

“Yes… when we wake up, the past day, and all of our memories from the time spent in… captivity, will all be gone.” The Doctor said. “Not just blocked, like they never even happened.”

“Are we sure this is a good idea?” Susan questioned.

River nodded in agreement. “What about the baby?”

The Doctor began to pace around the console. “I’ve already found a good home to put her in. Earth, a good, human home that can show her lots of love and affection.”

“You’re going to Chameleon Arch her.” Susan deduced.

“…It really is for the best.” The Doctor replied quietly. “I can give her something so it won’t hurt, if that’s any consolation.”

“It isn’t.” Susan replied. “…But I’ll have to live with that, until we hit the reset button.”

“It’s not a reset button.” The Doctor replied. “The consequences of what we’ve done will still be with us… in our subconscious. Now…” He flicked a switch on the console and watched as an oddly shaped piece of headgear descended from the ceiling. “Let’s get this over with.”

**_ **DW** _ **

A loud banging came on the door of 6 Davies Street, as the inhabitants within tried to go about their Christmas dinner.

On the other side, a loud, frustrated groan came from the other side.

“If that is more carol singers,” A cross Scottish woman snapped. “I have a water pistol! You don’t want to be all wet on a night like… this…” She threw the door open and stared down at the child on her porch in shock.

“Oh my god…” She breathed, instantly going to pick the baby up. “Rory!” She screamed, running back into the house with the baby in her arms.

A moment later, a blonde man with a large nose came running outside, looking around in confusion, trying to search for the parties responsible.

Upon coming up empty handed, he walked back inside, closing the door.

And neither of them noted the police box silently vanishing down the street.

**_ **DW** _ **

The Doctor’s eyes creaked open slowly, the Time Lord smacking his lips as he pulled himself out of dreamland.

For a moment, he found himself wondering where he was, before he realized he was reclining comfortably in his own bed, staring up at the mural on the ceiling of his bedroom.

He frowned, as he found himself searching on the events of last night… Oh, that’s right, the three of them visited Milliways to celebrate Shepard finally receiving her TARDIS piloting license. He must’ve gotten more drunken than he thought, if it took him that long to remember.

The Doctor yawned and rolled over to look at his clock. Breakfast.

He got up, and made his way to the kitchen first, resolving to make the biggest, most chock-full of comfort food breakfast he could. No reason, he just… wanted to. Odd.

About an hour into his cooking spree, when he was finishing up the waffles that looked like little Mickey Mouse faces, the doors opened, and two people came walking in.

“Hello Susan, hello River.” The Doctor greeted, placing the waffles on their own plate.

River looked down at the breakfast, confused. “Um… are we having a birthday party?”

“No.” The Doctor answered, ripping off his apron.

“Then why is there cake?” River questioned.

“You can eat cake for breakfast!”

Susan began to yawn, rubbing sleep out of her eyes.

“Rough night?” The Doctor asked.

“Yeah… rough night.” She replied. “I had a nightmare. It was… something else.”

“Wanna talk about it?” The Doctor asked.

“No, thank you.” Susan answered. “It’s... disturbing, to say the least.”

“Well, if nothing else, I’m here if you need me.” The Doctor offered.

“Thanks.” Susan smiled.

The Doctor returned it and sat down to join both of them.

But something was off… something niggling at his mind incessantly.

Oh well, it was probably just déjà vu.


End file.
